With schools having closed for the third English lockdown, many parents - particularly those who cannot work from home - have been left in a precarious position.
Many of these people including in sectors such as health, education, public services, food manufacturing and financial services qualify as 'critical workers' under the new Government rules, meaning they can ask schools for childcare.
However, for other industries, it is up to the individual company to decide whether to permit use of the Government's furlough scheme, or like in the case of Swiss insurance firm Zurich, introduce fully-paid 'lockdown leave'.
There has been some confusion in recent days over the definition of a 'critical worker', with BusinessLive journalists receiving countless enquiries from workers saying they should not be required to go into the workplace, given the Government's strict 'stay at home' order.
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They included staff working at the Jaguar Land Rover plant on Merseyside, who were told childcare leave would be unpaid. DHL and JLR said its employees were 'critical workers' and so were eligible for childcare, but were then reportedly refused help by the schools.
While Prime Minister Boris Johnson has promised that schools will be the first to reopen when lockdown lifts, the earliest that will be is mid-February, with pupils having now moved to online learning.
What is a 'critical worker'?
At the start of this week, the Government laid out its official list of critical workers for the third national lockdown.
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They were:
- Health and social care (including, but is not limited to, doctors, nurses, midwives, paramedics, social workers, care workers, and other frontline health and social care staff including volunteers).
- Teachers, school support staff, childcare staff, social workers and other specialist educational professionals.
- Those essential to the running of the justice system.
- Religious staff.
- Charities and workers delivering key frontline service.
- Those responsible for the management of the deceased.
- Journalists and broadcasters who are providing public service broadcasting.
- Essential public services and those workers on the Covid-19 response in local and national government.
- Food processing, production, distribution, sale and delivery workers.
- Police and support staff.
- Firefighters.
- Border security, National Crime Agency staff, contractors and Armed Forces personnel.
- Transport workers (including those who keep air, water, road and rail passenger and freight transport operating during the coronavirus pandemic)
- Staff needed for essential financial services provision (including, but not limited to, workers in banks, building societies and financial market infrastructure).
- The oil, gas, electricity and water sectors, including sewerage.
- Information technology and data infrastructure sector and primary industry supplies to continue during the coronavirus response.
- Key staff working in the civil nuclear, chemicals, telecommunications (including, but not limited to, network operations, field engineering, call centre staff, IT and data infrastructure, 999 and 111 critical services).
- Postal services and delivery.
- Payments providers.
- Waste disposal sectors.
Which businesses and workplaces are allowed to open?
The businesses that are allowed to remain open - where employees may be asked to come into work - but may not always be considered 'critical workers', include:
- Non-essential retail venues operating click and collect (where goods are pre-ordered and collected without entering the premises) and delivery services.
- Food and drink businesses (including alcohol) can continue to operate takeaway only.
- Hotels and guest houses are permitted to open - but only for those in specific circumstances - where these act as someone’s main residence, where the person cannot return home, for providing accommodation or support to the homeless, or where it is essential to stay there for work purposes.
- Outdoor grounds of botanical gardens, heritage homes and landmarks may remain open - although the indoor attractions must close
- Libraries can also remain open to provide access to IT and digital services – for example for people who do not have it at home – and for click-and-collect services.
- Construction sites.
- Factories and manufacturing sites.
- Veterinary surgeons, animal rescue centres, boarding facilities and pet shops.
- Dental services, opticians, audiology services, chiropody, chiropractors, osteopaths and other medical or health services, including services relating to mental health.
- Funeral directors.
- Laundrettes and dry cleaners.
- Bicycle shops, vehicle repair and MOT services.
- Petrol stations and automatic car washes.
- Taxi or vehicle hire businesses and motorway service areas.
- Storage and distribution facilities including delivery drop off or collection points, are also able to open where the facilities are in the premises of a business allowed to remain open.
- Services (rather than goods) - such as accountants, solicitors, and estate agents - are not required to close, except for those stated .
I'm not a critical worker and and I have no childcare arrangements. Can I work from home?
The Government guidance says you must work from home unless you cannot reasonably do so.
According to work-life balance charity Working Families, if you have no childcare available and if it is at all possible for you to work from home, you should be allowed to work from home.
The impact that working from home has on your employer’s business should not be taken into account when making the decision of whether or not you can work from home, as it would be for a normal flexible working request – the government has advised that insofar as it is possible, you should work from home.
It's not possible to work from home. Does my company have to furlough me by law?
Unfortunately, no.
If you can’t work from home because of your role, or if you are unable to work (including from home) due to your caring responsibilities including homeschooling, you can be furloughed for this reason if eligible for the scheme.
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The government guidance on the extended scheme updated in November confirms that furlough is available to people who are required to stay home because they have childcare responsibilities resulting from coronavirus.
Many employers are not aware yet that the guidance has changed, so Working Families said it’s worth telling them that about your childcare problems and alerting them to the wording in the guidance.
The issue for parents and carers is that furlough is not an entitlement. Your employer does not have to agree to furlough you – it is their choice whether they put you on furlough or not, even if they are allowed to do so.
Working Families suggests if this happens, that employees stress to their employer how difficult this time is for the family, that it will not cost them anything over the 5% contribution to National Insurance Contributions and employer pension contributions and point them to the above guidance.
So can I take time off?
It's up to the individual employer to decide on this. As above, Swiss insurance firm Zurich this week introduce fully-paid 'lockdown leave' for its employees - 10 days' additional leave for parents and carers in its 海角视频 offices.
Other employers, such as JLR and DHL, who maintain their staff are 'critical workers', have said employees can take unpaid 'parents emergency dependent's leave' - or holiday.
Check if you can get parental leave
According to , if you’ve worked for your employer for at least a year, you can have unpaid parental leave for each of your children. You get 18 weeks for each child - this is for the whole period until they’re 18. Your child’s other parent can also take 18 weeks.
You can’t take parental leave if you’re furloughed.
The law says you can only take 4 weeks’ leave per child each year. You also have to tell your employer 21 days before you want to be off work.
Your employer may be flexible in these circumstances and allow you to take unpaid parental leave without giving 21days notice.
Can my employer ask me to bring my children to work?
According to Working Families, yes.
In certain circumstances, your employer may be able to ask you to bring your children into work, but they should not force you to do so.
You must yourself consider if it is safe for your children to be at your workplace and how it would impact your ability to do your job.